One of the first steps you take when you are determining your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

By reviewing the USDA zone info for Crete you will be able to figure out when it's a good idea to plant iceland poppy.

Planting Calendar for Iceland Poppy

Frost tolerance for iceland poppy:	Tolerant of some frost.
When to plant:	Up to 5 weeks before last frost.

Iceland Poppy are moderately cold tolerant which means that you can start planting them earlier than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant iceland poppy in Crete is February. However, you really should wait until March if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant iceland poppy and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your iceland poppy may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your iceland poppy indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Crete the average date of last frost happens on April 15. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of -15°F.

It's important to remember that USDA zone info for Crete is just an average and the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Crete there is a last frost after April 15 so make sure that you are prepared to protect your iceland poppy in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Crete

Here is the info for USDA Zone 5b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-15°F
Highest Expected Low	-10°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -15°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -10°F.

Plants to Grow in Crete

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Crete.